Old Demon and the Sea Witch (Welcome to Hell #9) - Eve Langlais Page 0,23

my skin.

“Stop trying to steal my sea monster,” Adexios grumbled. “She’s mine.” A reminder that had Sweets bolting for Adexios and wrapping him in a hug. The man still had the ability to blush. “Love you too, Sweets. Now, business time. Show Shax our prisoner.”

The eyestalk whipped over to the tank beside hers. I joined it and peeked down into the water. It didn’t have the oily sheen for privacy blocking my view, only a grate secured with a thick padlock. I saw a man sitting at the bottom of the vat. A fish man, his body hairless, a fin mohawking the top of his head, more fins around his arms and the backs of his legs.

“You said you found him in a tank with other fish. Could he have gotten there by accident with a catch?”

Adexios shook his head. “Each one was specifically handpicked to ensure only quality seafood for the length of the trip.”

“So, he snuck in after.” I knelt down and observed the prisoner’s lack of clothing. The legs weren’t fused together, and yet I could tell he kept his genitals tucked away. “Male, but not a merman. Not a pure one, at any rate.” Could be a hybrid. They had a tendency to favor one parent over the other, but later generations tended to have more mixed characteristics.

“I figured that due to the lack of a tail. But given his appearance, I’m going to make a guess and say he’s from Atlantis,” Adexios stated.

I nodded. “Seems most likely. They’re the only ones on record who have this kind of blending of aquatic and human traits.” The tattoo on the fish man’s chest also gave it away. An inverted trident pattern.

“Why would an Atlantean hide with our catch?”

“Spying, obviously. The question is what, or who, is he spying on? Is he just watching the cruise, trying to ensure that no one tries anything when we dock on his island? Is he looking for information on a particular guest? Or is he part of an effort to sabotage?”

“Why would anyone sabotage? Have they not heard of me? It’s bound to happen before the cruise is over.” Adexios knew his limitations. His father Charon might be the greatest boatman known in all the planes, but alas, his son didn’t inherit that gene. Still, my nephew kept trying.

“I hear they won’t let you near the controls for the ship.”

Adexios nodded. “They figure if I’m captain in name only, we might not run aground or get pulverized by a storm.”

“You do realize you have witches, demons, a kraken, and a shit ton of other magical folk aboard, right?”

“If only they were enough to stop what will surely happen,” Adexios said with a mournful shake of his head.

“Don’t be such a pessimist. It doesn’t always end in a ship sinking.”

“Do we need to list the ways it can go wrong?” Adexios exclaimed, flinging his hands above his head. “Or have you forgotten our family vacation?” He turned his gaze on me. “Remember the swan ride at the amusement park?”

I did. The chain had suddenly gotten caught, and everyone got dumped into what had turned out to be a baby-alligator-infested pond.

“You still whining about that? Those little teeth were no worse than a nipple clamp.” Valaska laughed as she joined us, the sound boisterous just like the rest of her. Think tall, wide, and blond with some Viking blood, and you’d have Adexios’s wife. The complete opposite of him, and yet theirs was a love match. She was also the Sushi Lover’s head of security.

Her and Adexios’s match had resulted in children. A pair of tiny robed beings who currently stood wraithlike by Valaska’s side. Cory and Kelly. My great-nephews or nieces. It was never actually specified.

I held open my arms. “Come say hi to your uncle.” I no longer feared little people since raising Ian.

When I rose, I had a child perched on each hip, their weight pleasing, their fingers clutching the treats they knew I kept in my pockets. A man should always have something sweet within reach. A trick all librarians learned early on.

The cowls of their robes hid their faces, but not their new size. “You’ve grown.”

“We are getting strong on the blood of our enemies,” Cory stated.

“You sound like your mother.”

“They both like to bash things,” Valaska confided.

“And what do you prefer, Kelly?” I asked.

“Books.”

“A child of knowledge.” My heart swelled with joy.

Then popped.

“I don’t read them. I eat them. With peanut butter and jelly. Mom says its